Noninvasive high resolution mechanical strain maps of the spine intervertebral disc using nonrigid registration of magnetic resonance images

High resolution strain measurements are of particular interest in load bearing tissues such as the intervertebral disc (IVD), permitting characterization of biomechanical conditions which could lead to injury and degenerative outcomes. Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging produces excellent image contrast in cartilaginous tissues, allowing for image-based strain determination. Nonrigid registration (NRR) of MR images has previously demonstrated sub-voxel registration accuracy although its accuracy and precision in determining strain has not been evaluated. Accuracy and precision of NRR-derived strain measurements were evaluated using computer generated deformations applied to both computer generated images and MR images. Two different measures of registration similarity—the cost function which drives the registration algorithm—were compared: Mutual Information (MI) and Least Squares (LS). Strain error was evaluated with respect to signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR), and strain heterogeneity. Additionally, the creep strain response from an in vitro loaded porcine IVD is shown and comparisons between similarity measures are presented. MI showed a decrease in strain precision with increasing CNR and decreasing SNR while LS was insensitive to both. Both similarity measures showed a decrease in strain precision with increasing strain heterogeneity. When computer generated heterogeneous strains were applied to MR images of the IVD, LS showed substantially lower strain error in comparison to MI. Results suggest that LS-driven NRR provides a more accurate image-based method for mapping large and heterogeneous strain fields and this method can be applied to studies of the IVD and, potentially, other soft tissues which present sufficient image texture.